Page 51 of Inevitable Love
She’s wearing a svelte ivory designer dress and sky-high heels. Her blond hair is sleeked back, her makeup flawless. She is the very definition of beautiful, polished businesswoman, all lean and glamorous, and I am the frumpy dumpling in a retro frock, clutching Jackson’s finger like a lifeline. I try to release his pinky before I break it clean off, and instead, he turns our palms together, linking our fingers tighter.
God, it’s so bittersweet to have him hold my handlike this.
“Maggie,” she croons, approaching me with outstretched hands. I’m frozen as she pulls me into an awkward embrace and presses her cheeks to either side of my face.
I have never greeted my sister like this. Never been greeted by her like this. It’s fucking weird.
“Hi, Sav,” I mutter.
“You look fabulous.” She holds me by the shoulders at arm’s length, eyes roaming everything from my face to my shoes.
What the fuck is happening?
“And who is this handsome… Wait. Jackson?” Her tone is incredulous.Ah, there it is. Any minute, the cutting, cunning, sharp-tongued vixen will appear.
“Hi, Savannah,” he says flatly, not even offering her a hand. A tiny thrill of validation rolls through me.
“Wow, it’s been a long time. You look great.”
Is she seriously flirting with him while he’s holding my hand right now?
“Yeah,” he mutters, scrubbing a palm over the back of his head like he’s uncomfortable. Then the hand holding mine flexes, and his attention shifts to me, like I’m supposed to take the reins of this awkward-as-hell interaction.
Savannah’s bright smile fades as he fails to carry the conversation. Her attention shifts back to me. “So I hear the bakery is doing well?”
“It is.”
“That’s great.”
Someone calls her name, and she makes promises to catch up with me later, giving me an arm squeeze and Jackson another bright smile before she leaves us in a wake of perfume-scented tension.
“Well. That was weird,” Jackson says, finally releasingmy hand and placing his at the small of my back. “Especially since I can’t seem to get the image of you on your knees out of my head.” His lips graze my ear as he delivers that panty-melting line. “Wanna meet me in the supply closet later?”
I bark a laugh and pull away from him. “No, you pervert. Now go mingle and behave. I’ve got work to do.”
He palms his chest as he backs away. “Ouch. You’re a brutal little thing. But also, keep it in mind.” And with an eyebrow waggle, he spins toward the growing crowd of people I’d rather avoid. Leave it to him to want to make this night one last adventure. I don’t know whether I’m horrified or intrigued by his invitation.
Unsettled, I turn my focus back to the event. Alice has done an outstanding job of keeping things organized, and she’s planned all kinds of memorable moments through the night, while leaving space for people to talk and reminisce. The evening flies by, punctuated by Jackson inserting himself into my line of sight pretty regularly. Every time I look up, I find his hot gaze on me. He’ll shoot me a wink, and I’ll shake my head, but the corners of my mouth tip up involuntarily.
“Girl, your dessert table has been destroyed,” Alice exclaims as she joins me near the middle of the party. “The only issue we’ve had is that we didn’t plan for enough. People love you. And all your business cards have been claimed. I’d call it a smashing success.”
Basking in the glow of that news, I beam. I did this. All the hard work, the early mornings and late nights, the fretting over recipes, the putting myself out there when I felt like I was screaming into the void. This is exactly the success I’d dreamed of.
Still smiling, I give her shoulder a nudge. “So, what’s left up your sleeve to surprise the crowd?”
She leans close. “Normally, I would make you wait. But I wanted to give you a heads-up, since I know it will hit you hardest. Some of the committee wanted to do a memorial for T.J. I tried to talk them out of it. But since his sister was on the committee, they fought pretty hard for it, and I was pretty much told it was set in stone. I’ve seen it. It’s sweet. But there is a picture of you and him at prom. I know you’ve moved forward, but I just wanted you to be ready.”
The decade-old heartache of losing T.J. doesn’t feel so cataclysmic against the knowledge that Jackson will soon be leaving. Still, it’s going to be sad watching that video, and I dread seeing it.
“Okay, thanks. I appreciate the heads-up. It would’ve been jarring to see that without warning. You know, I think about him often. I was telling Jax just a few weeks ago that T.J. is the reason I became a baker.”
“He wanted to be a baker? That’s weird. I don’t guess I realized that.”
“No. But he was chasing his dream. Losing him so young made me realize I needed to chase my dream and not settle for someone else’s plan for me.” Would T.J. be proud of the life I’ve made for myself? The thought gives me pause. Does it matter what he would think, anyway? What matters is that I’m proud of the life I’ve made, of the business I’ve built. Still, I send up a silent prayer of thanks that his memory was part of my catalyst.
“Well, obviously, tonight, you’ve achieved that goal.” She scans the room, then checks her watch. “Okay, I have five minutes of downtime, and then we’ll get prepped for the memorial video.”
“Enjoy your break,” I offer as she slips away. The backof my neck tingles with awareness, the same awareness I’ve been feeling all night. I scan the room, and sure enough, hot blue eyes are on me.
